Missives on US politics and parenthood from a London mum gone stateside

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Creepy Cops

We’ve just got back from the police station. It wasn’t a pretty experience. The place was brimming with menacing characters, the walls were blood stained and the air was thick with the voices of screaming children. My main thought was to make it quickly through the maze of corridors and get Little Teadrinker out of there just as fast as possible. Our crime? Choosing to attend the annual Campusville West District police halloween haunted house...

Its no exaggeration to say that Americans take halloween very seriously. The build-up has been going on for weeks now, with temporary costume shops popping up everywhere and frenzied exchanges on Campusvillemoms.com on subjects as diverse as where one can find a lobster costume for a 10 month-old and the most suitable ghoul outfit for a pregnant mom. One gets the feeling that babies born in Campusville General’s maternity ward this weekend will be delivered straight out of the womb into pumpkin suits.

Yet the irony of police here dedicating a whole building and a significant proportion of the local constabulary to scaring small children for two whole evenings (oh yes two), just as UK police face 20% cuts is hard to ignore. Even when the public purse was flush, such an event would scandalise spendthrift Brits - you can see the headlines now: Cop-Shop Shuts for Fuzz Freak Show. Its interesting that in contrast, in the midst of a financial crisis in a culture where tax is widely regarded as legalised robbery, this particular bit of state sponsored family fun is not something that the community chooses to forgo.